The Aftermath
by waterlooroad-jessica-SVU
Summary: Following on from Buried Alive, will Jacob and Connie get their happily ever after or will they continue to push each other away?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: i dont own casualty or any of its characters.

Authors note: this is my first Casualty fic and follows on from last Saturdays episode, Buried Alive. Enjoy.

From across the ED through the window of her office, all Jacob Masters could do was watch as his ex-girlfriend clung to her daughter following their near death experience; he noticed Connie glancing up at him, tears in her eyes as she nodded and gestured for him to come in. As he stood in the doorway, she mouthed 'i'm sorry; i love you' before taking a deep breath and pulling away from Grace.

"Baby...i know you were hurting i didnt tell you about us but...i love him baby; if it wasnt for Jacob, i wouldnt have got to speak to you or...the one thing that kept me going was coming back to you and...been a family"

"You promised mom"

"I know i did baby but...i need him too; you were getting on better before you found out. And i know he wants to try and be your friend"

"Too right firecracker" he agreed, making his presence known.

"What about me?"

"You will always be my number 1 priority Grace, i promised but...we deserve to be happy too and i'd really like you to try to be nice" she tried to reason with her daughter, her hands gently resting on the side of her face to show how sincere she was.

"I'll try"

"Thank you baby" she said, kissing her dark hair.

"Is he coming over tonight?" Grace asked after a few minutes.

"Upto you firecracker; if you dont want me to then i wont" Jacob answered.

"Mom?"

"I'd like him to but if you dont, he wont; i wont have him at the house unless you are happy with it" Connie agreed.

"Okay, he can come"

Connie let out a deep sigh of relief and hugged her daughter closer, struggling to hold back the tears as the realisation of how close she'd came to not seeing her again hit her like a tidal wave.

"Oh god" she whispered, feeling a panic attack coming on. "Jacob...i cant breathe"

He and Grace watched as she slid to the fall, bringing her daughter down with her as she struggled to catch her breath; Charlie and Zoe, who were stood just outside the doorway to the office, led Grace out to the vending machine as Jacob knelt next to Connie and took her hands.

"Hey, Con, look at me" he said, lifting her head with a finger under her chin. "You're gonna be fine; i need you to take a deep breath in...and out...and again"

He continued with the same instructions until her breathing had slowly eased out and she'd collapsed against him in exhaustion.

"We should get you checked out; you have a head wound that needs stitching and not mentioning you've probably got a bruised rib" he said, noticing Zoe had returned. "Zoe, do you mind?"

"Connie, can i have a look at you? I can do it in here you'd like?" Zoe offered as she entered the office and shut the door behind her, the necessary supplies in her hand.

In exhaustion, Connie agreed and allowed Jacob to lay her on the sofa in the office, his hand holding hers the whole time Zoe checked her over.

"Good news is, you've only bruised your ribs; i cant feel any fractures. And the head wound will heal on its own but i would recommend taking a couple of days off to rest and spend time with Grace; she was really worried about you"

Silently, Connie agreed.

"Why dont you head off and i'll sort your leave out for you? Jacob, i know Rita has already arranged for you to take 2 days out also" She offered.

Without a word, Connie grabbed her belongings and left the office with Jacob to find Grace, not bothering to chance out of the green and white uniform she had been supporting since they returned.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: i don't own Casualty or any of its characters

As they walked into the Beauchamp household, Grace immediately headed up to her room whilst Connie headed for her ensuite bathroom; Jacob followed but was disappointed and concerned when she closed the door in his face. Sighing, he went downstairs to the kitchen and got his girlfriend – or whatever she was at the minute – a glass a wine before sitting on her bed and waiting for her to re-enter; after what seemed like ages, the door finally opened and Connie emerged, donning a dressing down and her dark, long hair left loose around her shoulders. She took the glass off him and sat on the bed; taking a long sip, she placed the glass on her bedside table and lay down on her side, away from Jacob. Now he was concerned. He preferred it when the Connie he knew would retaliate and argue; he didn't like to see the one in front of him: distant and hurting and suffering.

"Con, talk to me?" he tried but got not response, "Do you want anything to eat?"

When she didn't reply, he kissed her hair, pulled the blanket over her so she didn't get cold and went to ask Grace what she wanted to eat; knocking on the young girl's open door, he was surprised when Grace turned round to face him with tears in her eyes.

"Hey firecracker, what's wrong with you, eh?" he asked, not entering until she gave him permission to.

"Where's mom?"

"Resting; today really scared her, scared us all" he answered.

"I thought she was never coming home" she admitted.

"She wouldn't give up without a fight; you are the most important thing in her life. She's just got you back; she isn't going to risk that"

"And you"

"I don't know about that but i think she could probably do with a hug from her baby right now"

"Okay"

"How do you feel about Pizza tonight?"

"Ham and pineapple with stuffed crust and cheesy fries" she answered before walking past him and heading into her mom's room, lying on the bed and snuggling into her moms welcoming arms.

From the doorway, Jacob smiled as Connie looked over at him; she whispered 'sorry' to him for a second time that day before he disappeared downstairs to make the call. When the Pizza had arrived an hour and half later, Connie was sleeping somewhat peacefully so left her to do so whilst he and Grace bonded; with the youngster finally in bed, after kissing her mom goodnight, Jacob slid into the bed next to Connie and put a hand to her arm as she stirred suddenly. He noticed her pained expression and her breathing quickening, her head thrashing from side to side and small moans escaping from her lips.

"Con, wake up for me; you're having a nightmare. It's okay; you're safe. We both are; we're at home with Grace"

Slowly, with some reassuring words from Jacob, she came out of the nightmare and her eyes popped wide open in fear; taking some deep breaths, she let the tears fall as she gave in and collapsed into his strong embrace, needing to feel safe and secure in his arms.


End file.
